A cultural journey of tastes

My week got off to a great start with 20 minutes of yoga for runners.  I love doing this download the day after a long run as it’s stretches out all of the muscles that have become tight.  Afterward I made yoghurt bowl for breakfast topping it with Dorset Cereals simply tasty muesli, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and blackberries with a little Sweet Freedom sweetener.

Rather than using my normal choice of yoghurt I picked up some Kefir in Asda last week and decided to use that instead.

Kefir is a fermented milk drink discovered in the Caucasus Mountains centuries ago.  It has many health benefits, such as  antifungal and pre-biotic properties.  It also contains many vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes, specifically calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, B2 and B12, vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin D. Kefir grains ferment cows, goats and sheep milk but also soya, rice and coconut milk too.  Perfect for those following a vegetarian or vegan diet.

For lunch I made another delicious Buddha Bowl consisting of mixed leaves, bulgar wheat, cannellini beans, mango and melon.

I topped this with Laura’s dressing that involves mixing tahini, sweet white miso and water.  This dressing is so simple but so tasty!

Lunch was followed by a banana, apple and a plum.  Later in the afternoon I ate my pre-workout snack which was a Seeded Stack bar and an orange.  When I made it home I did my usual toning workout.  I decided do the repetitions much more slowly than usual rather than trying to speed through them.  Well, this really woke my muscles up and I am feeling it today too.

Yoga + toning exercises = serious DOMS!

For dinner I stuffed two portabello mushrooms with a Lemon Herby Bean and Millet Burger olives and sundried tomatoes and served them with steamed kale in soy sauce and omega mixed seeds and parsnip chips.

After yesterdays post dessert had to be bar of Rawr Cashew Power and a pink lady apple.

This mornings breakfast was a-maz-ing! I made a Cookie Dough Chia Seed Pudding.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp of chia seeds
• 2 tbsp of peanut flour (I used PB2)
• 3 tbsp of wheat germ
• 3 tbsp of oats
• 2 cups of vanilla rice milk
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tsp of sweet freedom sweetener

Mix all the ingredients together and allow to soak overnight in the fridge or at room temperature.  Of course play around with the quantities of the ingredients and super food add-ins like maca powder, mesquite etc. and protein powders.  I found that this recipe produce a wonderfully light and creamy pudding.

Don’t forget the toppings…

…and additional toppings!:)

I’m loving experimenting with chia seeds at the moment.  They taste so good!  There was one point last night where I was actually standing and cheering the seeds on to swell up.

Yes I’m crazy, it’s already a given!

Lunch was just a repeat of Mondays Buddha Bowl followed by a chopped persimmon and kiwi.  I waited for them to ripen and go a little bit soft.  They tasted perfect and were really sweet.  This was my first time trying persimmon and I loved them.  They will definitely be making a regular appearance in my shopping trolley!

My pre-workout snack was a slice of ginger bread and two oranges.  Whilst at the gym I did my usual 1 hour interval training on the treadmill, cross trainer, step machine and bike followed by some ab work.

For dinner tonight I had my Spinach Dhal with toasted pita bread and steamed broccoli florets.

Before this I hadn’t really ha a proper dhal dish.  The Spinach Dhal was delicious and I love the mild spices.  It contains a little chilli, but for flavour and not for heat.  I do like hot and spicy food, however sometimes I find that too much chilli can overpower the rest of the flavours in a dish-well not here my friends!

Ingredients

• 2 cups of red lentils
• 1 clove of garlic (optional)
• 1 onion diced (optional)
• 1 tsp of cumin
• 1/2 tsp of mild chilli powder
• 1 tsp of turmeric
• 1 tsp of ground coriander
• 1 tsp of crushed yellow mustard seeds
• 2 cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• vegetable stock to cover
• seasonings
• handfuls of spinach

First soften the onion in a little oil of your choice (I use canola oil).  Once the onion has softened add the garlic and cook out for a few minutes.  Next add the ground spices to the pan and cook for a minute or so until aromatic.  Add the lentils, bay leaves and cloves to the saucepan and cover with the vegetable stock.  Cook the lentils on a steady simmer, until they are cooked all the way through and become creamy.  Stir in the spinach and allow it to wilt in the heat of the lentils.

You really don’t have to add the onion and garlic.  I did as I think its a nice way to cook out the spices.  If you decide not to include the onion and garlic in your dhal then simply begin with the stock and lentils and add all of the spices at once.

This would be great as an accompliment to a curry dish, rice, vegetables or even on its own.

Enjoy!

Look what I found lurking behind a plant pot in my garden:

The wonderful and lovely Lucinda, who I met at the Vitality Show, has sent me a range of Munchy Seeds which includes:

• Vanilla Pumpkin
• Choccy Munchy Seeds
• Pumpkin Mix
• Omega Sprinkle
• Chilli Mix
• Crunchy Bites

I also received some of the pour out packs too…

I can’t wait to try all of these seeds!!!

The past few days have been full of new foods.  I love trying and experiencing new foods, especially form different cultures.

Have you tried anything culturally different recently food wise? The kefir, persimmon fruit and dhal are all new to me.  I really enjoyed all of them and the fact that all three originate from different parts of the world.

Have you tried Kefir before?  What did you think? I really liked it as a lighter option to regular yoghurt, but found it a little bland without the addition of the sweetener, muesli and fruit.

Tagged as: Cookie Dough Chia Pudding, Kefir, Munchy Seeds, Spinach Dhal, Vitality Show